Swartzia is a genus of flowering plants in the family Fabaceae. It was named in honor of Swedish botanist Olof Swartz and contains about 200 species. Swartzia is restricted in its geographical distribution to the New World Tropics, where it occurs primarily in lowland rainforests, but also in savannas, pre-montane forests, and tropical dry forests. While it can be found throughout the wet lowlands from Mexico and the Caribbean islands to southern Brazil and Bolivia, Swartzia is most abundant and species-rich in Amazonia, where 10–20 species may co-occur at a single site. The species of Swartzia are mostly trees, ranging from small understory treelets to large canopy emergents. Some species, especially in savannas, are mult-stemmed shrubs.

Swartzia
Swartzia langsdorffii
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Fabales
Family: Fabaceae
Subfamily: Faboideae
Tribe: Swartzieae
Genus: Swartzia
Schreb. (1791), nom. cons.
Species

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Synonyms[1]
  • Gynanthistrophe Poit. ex DC. (1825)
  • Hoelzelia Neck. (1790), opus utique oppr.
  • Huertia Mutis (1957)
  • Possira Aubl. (1775)
  • Possura Aubl. ex Steud. (1841), not validly publ.
  • Rittera Schreb. (1789)
  • Riveria Kunth (1825)
  • Tounatea Aubl. (1775), nom. rej.
  • Tunatea Kuntze (1891), orth. var.

Fossil record

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Many Swartzia fossils from the middle Eocene epoch are known from the United States. 5 fossil dehiscent seed pods and 50 fossil leaflets have been described from the Warman and Lawrence clay pits in Weakley and the Henry Counties, Tennessee. In addition 6 leaflets have been described from the New Lawrence and Miller clay pits in Henry County, Tennessee.[2]

List of species

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More than 200 species have been described:[1][3][4]

Recent phylogenetic analyses have revealed several well-supported clades within Swartzia that roughly correspond to previously-erected sections and series in the genus.[8]

The following species may or may not be valid:[9]

  • Swartzia arenarium Ducke
  • Swartzia flabellipetala Pittier
  • Swartzia microcalyx Ducke
  • Swartzia shnilis Benoist

References

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  1. ^ a b Swartzia Schreb. Plants of the World Online. Retrieved 21 September 2023.
  2. ^ The Fossil History of Leguminosae from the Eocene of Southeastern North America by Patrick S. Herendeen, Advances in Legume Systematics: Part 4, The Fossil Record, Ed. P.S. Herendeen & Dilcher, 1992, The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, ISBN 0 947643 40 0
  3. ^ "ILDIS LegumeWeb entry for Swartzia". International Legume Database & Information Service. Cardiff School of Computer Science & Informatics. Retrieved 30 January 2014.
  4. ^ USDA; ARS; National Genetic Resources Program. "GRIN species records of Swartzia". Germplasm Resources Information Network—(GRIN) [Online Database]. National Germplasm Resources Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland. Retrieved 30 January 2014.
  5. ^ a b c Torke BM (2007). "Three new species of Swartzia (Leguminosae–Papilionoideae) from northern South America". Bot J Linn Soc. 153 (3): 343–355. doi:10.1111/j.1095-8339.2007.00587.x.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h Torke BM (2007). "New Combinations and Species-level Synonyms in Swartzia (Leguminosae: Papilionoideae)". Novon. 17 (1): 110–119. doi:10.3417/1055-3177(2007)17[110:NCASSI]2.0.CO;2.
  7. ^ Aguirre-Bravo C, Villa-Salas AB (June 1996). Partnerships for Sustainable Forest Ecosystem Management: Fifth Mexico–U. S. Biennial Symposium. DIANE Publishing. pp. 58–68. ISBN 978-0-7881-2978-0. Retrieved 16 April 2011.
  8. ^ Torke BM, Schaal BA (2008). "Molecular phylogenetics of the species-rich neotropical genus Swartzia (Leguminosae, Papilionoideae) and related genera of the swartzioid clade". Am J Bot. 95 (2): 215–228. doi:10.3732/ajb.95.2.215. PMID 21632346.
  9. ^ "The Plant List entry for Swartzia". The Plant List. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and Missouri Botanical Garden. Retrieved 31 January 2014.
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